Career

In 1944, Rafi moved to Mumbai. Rafi appeared in two movies. In 1945, he appeared on the screen for the song "Tera Jalwa Jis Ne Dekha" in the film Laila Majnu. He sang a number of songs as part of the chorus, including with K. L. Saigal from the movie Shahjahan (1946). Rafi sang in Mehboob Khan's Anmol Ghadi (1946). He had a duet with Noor Jehan in the 1947 film Jugnu, "Yahan Badla Wafa Ka". After partition, Rafi decided to stay in India. Noor Jehan migrated to Pakistan and made a pair with playback singer Ahmed Rushdi.

In 1949, Rafi was given solo songs by music directors such as Naushad, Shyam Sunder, and Husnalal Bhagatram.

In his early career, Rafi associated with many contemporary music directors, most notably Naushad Ali. In the late 1950s and 1960s, he worked with other composers of the era such as O. P. Nayyar, Shankar Jaikishan, S.D. Burman and Roshan.

In the early 1970s, Rafi recorded fewer songs. He made a comeback as a leading singer in 1974.

Death

On Thursday, July 31, 1980, Rafi died at 10:50 p.m., following a massive heart attack. He had four sons (Saeed Rafi, Khalid Rafi, Hamid Rafi, Shahid Rafi), three daughters (Parveen, Nasreen, Yasmin) and 18 grandchildren.